Can a US citizen who married in another country apply for visa for his wife in that country US consulate or he has to come back to US without his wife and apply from US. He cannot take his wife to US withput applying for visa? Does it neccesary has to be done from the USA so he dont have leave his wife? Thank you.
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US citizen married abroad
- Thread starter Melany
- Start date
Wife abroad
Melany,
If you married abroad, the visa process must be started in the US, and finished in the Embassy abroad where you got married. If where you got married is different than where your spouse lives, it gets VERY complicated. If marriage occured where spouse currently lives and is citizen of, then it is a little easier. Stress the "little" portion!
You must come back and file an I-129F(K3) and an I-130 through the USCIS. Then, eventually, this makes it's way to the NVC(National Visa Center) in New Hampshire, and once approved, goes to the Embassy of the Country your spouse resides in. Unfortunately, this is a LENGTHY process.
There are many steps, and enormous amount of paper work to be submitted, and lots and lots of waiting in between approvals of the submissions. It is a painfully slow process. I am just finishing this process for my wife in Moscow.
She has just been scheduled for her Embassy interview on November 10th, 2005. She should be in the US in a week or ten days thereafter. It will have been 13 months at that point.
Part of how long it takes depends on what part of the country you live in. USCIS has various processing centers, and some are very very slow. They get way behind on certain types of visa processing, and at that point, bring people in to catch up. For example, in the processing of my visa, Missouri Service Center was 7 months behind on K3 Processing. We were approved early July from an application that was submitted late November 2004, and approved December 22, 2004. Immediately after our visa was approved, MSC caught up, and by the end of July 2005 was processing visas received at the end of JUNE 2005. This happened in three weeks. It was a bad break for us, but, it is behind us. Even now, we wait. Application got sent to NVC, and more weeks of waiting for a "receipt" letter. This is a bar coded letter with a USCIS number, and request for more money. Once this is sent, more processing time, FBI and CIA checks, and approval. Then, a few more weeks until this is sent to the Embassy, and more weeks of waiting. It has taken us 2 months + to get the Embassy interview, and these are scheduled 2 months in advance. So, there go 4 more months, and no guarantees after that!
I had a lawyer through this process, but, he made some critical errors which cost us a significant amount of time. If I had to do this again, which most people do not, I would do it differently, and not waste my money with a high volume attorney, who is of little or no help.
If you have any questions, you may e mail me directly at Dovch1@aol.com.
Best wishes to you and your wife.
Jim S.
Melany,
If you married abroad, the visa process must be started in the US, and finished in the Embassy abroad where you got married. If where you got married is different than where your spouse lives, it gets VERY complicated. If marriage occured where spouse currently lives and is citizen of, then it is a little easier. Stress the "little" portion!
You must come back and file an I-129F(K3) and an I-130 through the USCIS. Then, eventually, this makes it's way to the NVC(National Visa Center) in New Hampshire, and once approved, goes to the Embassy of the Country your spouse resides in. Unfortunately, this is a LENGTHY process.
There are many steps, and enormous amount of paper work to be submitted, and lots and lots of waiting in between approvals of the submissions. It is a painfully slow process. I am just finishing this process for my wife in Moscow.
She has just been scheduled for her Embassy interview on November 10th, 2005. She should be in the US in a week or ten days thereafter. It will have been 13 months at that point.
Part of how long it takes depends on what part of the country you live in. USCIS has various processing centers, and some are very very slow. They get way behind on certain types of visa processing, and at that point, bring people in to catch up. For example, in the processing of my visa, Missouri Service Center was 7 months behind on K3 Processing. We were approved early July from an application that was submitted late November 2004, and approved December 22, 2004. Immediately after our visa was approved, MSC caught up, and by the end of July 2005 was processing visas received at the end of JUNE 2005. This happened in three weeks. It was a bad break for us, but, it is behind us. Even now, we wait. Application got sent to NVC, and more weeks of waiting for a "receipt" letter. This is a bar coded letter with a USCIS number, and request for more money. Once this is sent, more processing time, FBI and CIA checks, and approval. Then, a few more weeks until this is sent to the Embassy, and more weeks of waiting. It has taken us 2 months + to get the Embassy interview, and these are scheduled 2 months in advance. So, there go 4 more months, and no guarantees after that!
I had a lawyer through this process, but, he made some critical errors which cost us a significant amount of time. If I had to do this again, which most people do not, I would do it differently, and not waste my money with a high volume attorney, who is of little or no help.
If you have any questions, you may e mail me directly at Dovch1@aol.com.
Best wishes to you and your wife.
Jim S.
sap12452003
Registered Users (C)
Melany said:Can a US citizen who married in another country apply for visa for his wife in that country US consulate or he has to come back to US without his wife and apply from US. He cannot take his wife to US withput applying for visa? Does it neccesary has to be done from the USA so he dont have leave his wife? Thank you.
I gusess US consulates in certain contries do have jurisdiction to adjuricate I-130. Check with local consulates.
The initial petitions (I-130/I-129, etc) are approved by DHS, NVC and Consulates are under the DOS.
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1315.html#1b
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1315.html#1b